View full sizeIsraeli teens Tslil Halevi, left, and Yuval Hamri pick out some southern food as they attend a welcome dinner at Max's Deli. The teens are part of a singing group from Israel, the Young Rosh Ha'ayiners and are from Birmingham's sister city Rosh Ha'ayin. ( The Birmingham News / Hal Yeager)

A group of 17 teenage Israeli singers has been sampling fried chicken and singing for Children's Hospital patients and inner-city youth campers at the YWCA this week as part of a cultural program that brought them to Alabama from the Holy Land.

The Young Rosh Ha'ayiners are being hosted by the Birmingham Jewish Federation and taking part in programs to highlight Birmingham's sister-city relationship with Rosh Ha'ayin, Israel, a city of more than 30,000 people just outside Tel Aviv.

The teens will perform a free, public concert at the Levite Jewish Community Center tonight at 8:45.

"They want to share their culture and express what Israel means to them," said Nancy Denney, one of the Federation hosts.

On Thursday morning, the Israeli teens sang in Hebrew and danced for children taking part in the YWCA summer camp.

Chazmyn Hudson, 9, a fourth-grader at Hudson Elementary School, listened intently as the group sang a Hebrew version of "Do-Re-Mi" a cappella, then ran up and began hugging the Israelis before they left.

"They were awesome," she said.

The group of 15 girls and two boys, ranging in age from 13 to 18, leave on Sunday. They arrived in Birmingham on Wednesday and were greeted at a welcoming dinner at Max's Deli that featured Southern cuisine.

When Birmingham Jewish leaders led a prayer in Hebrew before the meal, Nitzan Schezinger,15, found the Southern dialect amusing.

"With an accent," she said. "It's funny when people speak Hebrew who are not Israelis."

"In Israel it's not so common," said May Vizel, 17, who passed on the fried chicken and ate a hamburger instead.

"We do have KFC," said chaperone Sigal Shalev, who accompanied the group from Rosh Ha'ayin.

Israeli teens join the army at 18, and three of the singers are scheduled to be inducted within the next year. "They all will eventually go to the army," said Donna Schiff, one of the Federation hosts for the visit.

"Israel is a very small country surrounded by enemies who want to destroy us and we have to struggle for our survival," said Shalev. "It's a very difficult struggle."

One of the singers, Lior Mor, 17, said she turns 18 in December and will report to the army in February. She has already undergone physical and academic placement tests for military service.